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Littleton slots parlor not on table yet

LITTLETON -- Selectmen are taking Canadian casino operator Clairvest's interest in bringing up to 1,250 slot machines to Littleton in stride, saying there is no formal proposal yet.

Clairvest's preliminary plan would bring a slots operation to a 90-acre mixed-use complex under development on Great Road at the junction of Interstate 495 by Littleton Common. The property, the former Cisco Systems site, is owned by Sam Park & Company, which broke ground in August on a development that includes retail, hotel, restaurants and office space.

Clairvest, based in Toronto, is one of nearly a dozen parties contemplating applying for the single license the state will issue for a slots-only gaming facility. If Clairvest decides it wants to pursue building a slots operation at the Littleton site, the town would weigh residents' preferences before choosing a course of action, Selectman Alex McCurdy said.

Such a project would require voters' approval by a referendum ballot question and Town Meeting.

"This isn't just a revenue issue for the town. This is the type of thing that the whole town has to buy into," McCurdy said.

"We think it will make a great entertainment use" of the property, said Sam Park, president of Sam Park and Company, which purchased the land in September 2011. The development is called The Point.

"We are deferring to the town and the community whether it wants (a slots operation) or not," Park said.

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Clairvest, a publicly traded investment firm that operates casinos in the U.S., Canada and Chile, recently announced that it is "evaluating the potential" for a 100,000-square-foot slots operation at The Point. Under the state's year-old casino law, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission will issue three casino licenses and one license for a slots-only facility. The deadline to apply for the slots-only license is Jan. 15. The license will not permit any table games.

Clairvest is one of the 11 firms that have met with the commission about the application process, according to the Boston Herald. The Associated Press has reported that Plainridge harness racing track in Plainville has already paid a $400,000 application fee to the commission, and Raynham Park, a former dog track, will likely soon apply.

The commission will make available at least $50,000 of the $400,000 nonrefundable filing fee to the host and surrounding communities to help analyze the impact of a proposed gaming establishment and negotiate community impact mitigation agreements, according to Town Administrator Keith Bergman.

In a company statement posted on Littleton's town website, Clairvest said The Point's close proximity to Interstate 495 and Route 2 could make it the ideal location.

"Should Clairvest decide to proceed, it is committed to a transparent process that meets the needs of all stakeholders," the company added in the statement.

Town officials, including Selectmen Chairman Gregg Champney and Planning Board Chairman Mark Montanari and various department heads, first met with Clairvest representatives at the company's request on Sept. 14, according to Bergman.

Their second meeting was held on Dec. 4, which included Park, who noted that he would follow the town's lead in deciding if there should be a slots operation at The Point, Bergman said.

"We anticipate that there would be significant financial benefits for the town, which the townspeople can weigh in deciding whether to proceed or not," Bergman said Thursday in an email to The Sun.

Bergman added that additional tax revenues from The Point, such as local meals and room-occupancy taxes from potential hotel and restaurants, are only part of the financial benefits. The host community agreement could include mitigation terms that could generate revenue for the town, and the local government would also get a share of the state's community mitigation fund, Bergman said.

Selectman Joseph Knox said positives and negatives beyond the financial benefits -- including zoning considerations and the "feel of the town" -- must be considered. The town needs to present as much information to residents as possible, Knox said.

"I understand this is a very, very polarizing issue," McCurdy said, vowing to keep the process open and "in the hands of voters" should Clairvest move forward with a slots operation.

"There have been some residents who have made it quite clear that they are not in favor of this," said McCurdy.

Knox and McCurdy also stressed that Clairvest may not even apply for the license.

"I don't make too much of it," Knox said Clairvest's interest in Littleton, because he believes the chance of Clairvest coming forward with a formal proposal and obtaining the license is small.

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